John Nechman
Google
Ahh, those little gems where you least suspect them!
Underground Hall at 1010 Prairie St. was one of the first of the Downtown food halls, and I ventured into it wondering how it was doing in the revival post-Covid. It was surprisingly busy on a weekday after what I hoped had been a strong lunch rush, and I decided to try a new place that replaced a former wine bar Richi and I enjoyed just under the stairs. FIgata Crafted Paninis is run by a creative young man from Mexico named Carlos, and it is obvious he takes great pride in his product.
He should—this place serves what may be the best sandwich in Downtown.
The menu contains charcuterie boards and salads (they look amazing based on pictures I’ve seen online) and 8 hand-crafted panini. The key word here is craft. I don’t know how, but I managed to delete a video I snuck of Carlos putting together my Arrabiata (No. 2 on the menu—the “house special”). It was like watching a nuclear scientist or surgeon at work—careful slices here, a couple of gentle squeezes there, tweezers carefully arranging this and that, delicate swabs of dressings, precision shredding of veggies…
And what a sandwich!! First the bread—ciabatta made in-house and absolutely astounding, this bread has just the right give and take of texture and chew. On 2 toasted slices go a slightly tangy house dressing, house-cured porchetta, thin slices of jack pepper cheese, a critical drizzle of local honey, slices of avocado and cucumbers, just the right amount of jalapeños, super-fine shredded iceberg lettuce, and a homemade jalapeño mayo.
Nothing on this sandwich overwhelms, and it all comes together like that symphony that almost brings you to tears (OK—at least it does for mad food freaks like me). Even the potato chips served with it taste fabulous. At $12 to $14, these sandwiches aren’t cheap, but when you taste the care that goes into making them, think you’ll agree they’re worth it. I can’t wait to come back and work my way through the rest of this menu.